The invention relates to automobile suspensions and more particularly to assemblies for damping vertical vibrations of wheel assemblies.
For background, reference is made to U.S. Pat. No. 4,991,698.
It is an important object of the invention to provide an improved automobile suspension.
According to the invention, a wheel assembly for a vehicle includes a wheel axis, a brake assembly which defines the outer radius of an annular region about the axis, and a damping mass assembly located within the annular region for damping vertical vibrations of the wheel assembly.
In another aspect of the invention a wheel assembly for vehicle includes a wheel axis, an annular region about he axis, a brake assembly in the annular region, and a damping mass assembly located within the annular region for damping vertical vibrations of the wheel assembly. The damping mass assembly includes a damping mass, and a damping mass vertical positioning assembly for positioning the damping mass. The vertical positioning assembly for positioning the damping mass. The vertical positioning assembly includes a shaft, for causing the vertical vibrations of the wheel assembly to be translated to vertical, non-radial movement of the damping mass, and a first spring, for opposing in a first direction the vertical motion of the damping mass.
In a specific form, the damping mass assembly is in a nonrotating section of the wheel. There is a first surface mechanically coupled to the nonrotating section of the wheel, a second surface mechanically coupled to the damping mass, wherein a first spring exerts force by urging the first surface away from the second surface. A third surface is mechanically coupled to the nonrotating section of the wheel. A fourth surface is mechanically coupled to the damping mass wherein a second spring exerts force by urging the third surface away from the fourth surface. The damping mass positioning assembly is constructed and arranged so that a condition in which the first spring contacts both the first surface and the second surface and a condition in which the second spring contacts both the third surface and the fourth surface are mutually exclusive.